The Labor enquirer., 1887-03-19
Why Respectable American
Girls Do Not Go Out 10
Service.
Anna Haskell Speaks Ont Plainly
Upon the Question of Doing
Menial Service.
Why the Aongoliaa Slaves Are Prs-
fsrred bY the AusAroon Arista.
crats Of America.


work for living. II astonishes them
to think that girl would prefer to work
in a factory or shop instsad Of in the
houses Of some richer neigh6dr. There
must be some reason for il and maybe
If these anxious inquirers should try to
find the reason by occupying the position
themselves for time they would cease
wondering.
In shop or factory It is bsd enough,
but the employees have their regular
work to perform, their regular hours and
there is not 50 much bossing. That is
the great objection to housewofk. A girl.
however well4she is educated and raised
and however much Of lady she is, will
be relegated to the kitchen and looked
upon and treated as>a slave or machine
or combination Of both.
/ Ihavea friend who answered an ad-
vertisementfrom an employment Office
in this city for house she was we'll
educated, a good musician, and probably
as true lady as she who desired to en-.
gage her. She expected to do the work !,
|of course, that was her business. But
pending an engagement, the gentleman(?)
thus admonished her: y have en-.
ployed Chinaman heretofore but for
fear Of being boYcotted in nv business,
have decided to employ white help; I
desire you to understan that You are
servant and that you are never to in.
dulge In any familiarity or touch the
piano. If, after doing washing. you
are called upon to cook for and wait
upon company, or anything of that sort,
we do not want to hear any complaints
of your being tired; you must remem.
Der that you are a servant and conduct
yourself as SUCH Among other things
che was not to be allowed to use the
bath-tub.
1t is hard to realize that an American
man would thus address an American
man,-but they do, for this ! have
ated is fact. But it is not hard to re
alize that an American woman with any
sense of decency would rather starve
than be thus tre ted,
Here in California particularly, women
are put down to level with Cinnamon,
in fact below Them. for they do not get
as high wages and in general houswork
are expected to sew, if they have any
spare time, or take care of children,
while he of the celestial kingdom, when
he has leisure, may 90 Of down town to
some opium joint and mix with the
sweet scented. cleanly members of his
race.
1t some ways Chlnamsn may bs pre-
ferable; low they don't care about a
bath-tub. One to my knowledge used
milk pail in which to bathe his feet, an
other cut his toe nails with the butcher
knife; no. they are not so fastidious as
American girls.
But Chinaman does not object to be.
Ing bossed and girl does; when I say
"bossing" do not mean telling them
what to do or how to do. in decent
manner. But this way employers have
of trying to impress upon their EN-.
ployes that-"Decause you are compelled
to come into nv kitchen q and work for
an honest living and because am able
to pay you with NJ oney that have most
likely stolen, l am vastly superior To
you; you are poor yop are my, servant
you must obey my orders ,and you must
feel honored that l coniescend TO speak
to YOU at ALL"
And still the learned writers OF the
ladies' colu I'm in the Sunday papers la-
ent the growing degeneracy of the
times in the f ct that women teach and
clerk and sew and do anything or every
thing except housework. And still the
ministers Of God preach Servants ot ey
your masters" and not word about
Masters treat your servants decently.'
And still the girls get further and fur.
ther away from the kitchens Of theig
''supe riors."
say, hurrah for the girls anyhow,
that they have sand enough and nerve
enough to maintain that their souls are
their ownI ANNA H. F: HASKELL.